Let's get ready for Shavasana and taking your time to get comfortable and laying on your back.
If that works for you,
Bent knees,
Or you could have a rolled blanket under the knees if that is nice,
Or just stretch the legs out straight.
Some people like a little neck roll and or to cover with a blanket,
Softening your breath and sensing your body.
Sometimes people that have a strong visual sense might have a tendency to more see the body versus to sense the body.
And that's,
That's fine.
I'm actually going to guide a little practice in a moment that does include some visualization.
And in these moments,
As we're beginning,
I invite you to really kind of sense what's the flow,
What's the inner body movements?
What's the sensations of your body resting on the floor and the muscles softening and your organs kind of settling or softening towards the ground.
Maybe you have sensations on the surface of your skin,
Or as you feel your inner body more that it's as if your skin becomes a little more permeable.
You might feel that you widen somehow into the space around your body.
Whatever is your experience,
I invite you to softly welcome it to settle,
To sense your breath,
Sense your spine now coming into the aware of your central channel connected physically through the tailbone through the top of the spine.
And then there's also the traditions,
Many traditions will teach us of a more subtle channel sometimes called the river of life,
River of life flows through the spine.
So just sensing that central channel,
However you experience that,
And then bring your awareness down to the base of your spine,
Resting your awareness there.
Now I invite you to imagine that you are walking in a sacred forest,
Pleasantly warm,
There are the smells of the forest around you,
The sun is shining through the trees kind of dappling through,
And you can hear the sound of water,
Like a babbling brook.
You walk in the direction of the water,
You just come over a clearing and you look down and you see the kind of the mouth of a stream,
This opening,
And there's this water spring that's kind of babbling up from deep into the earth and looks so inviting to step into the water and it's cool and it's fresh.
Somehow in kind of a dream-like quality,
I'd like you now to sense yourself as a swan,
A beautiful white swan that is right here at the spring,
This mouth of this spring flows into a stream,
Brook,
As you are this swan and you're here at the base of the spine,
This mouth of the river,
A ray of sunlight beams upon you and you feel secure and at home.
The current of stream starts to carry you now along the stream,
Along this river,
It's peaceful,
It's beautiful,
Trees around you,
The swan are enjoying and savoring,
And you come to a place in a stream where the branches above kind of open and the sun can ray and beam upon you and the feeling is of joy,
Pleasure,
And still the stream,
The current carries you along.
You come to another place where the branches above open and the sun shines so brightly and vibrantly upon you and you feel confident and vibrantly alive and still the current of the stream carries you along.
You flow up the stream,
There's another opening in the trees and the sun rays down upon you and you feel a peacefulness and a compassion that includes you and includes all around you as well,
The environment,
The water itself,
The air,
The forest,
The sun,
And still the current carries you along,
Effortlessly you flow as this beautiful swan down the river,
Along the river,
And another ray of light beams through upon you,
Shining upon you,
And you can feel and be aware of your uniqueness,
Your authentic uniqueness,
Belonging to everything and yet one of a kind as well,
And still the river,
The current carries you along effortlessly,
Again there is an opening in the trees and the sun can shine brightly upon you and you feel an inner knowing,
A natural intelligence,
Not polarized or separate but a knowing that includes your connection with all that is,
And now the river opens into a huge ocean,
An ocean of being,
Of peace,
Of belonging,
Of joy,
You allow yourself to expand,
Soften,
To rest,
To become one with that ocean,
You release your breath,
Sense your body resting on the floor or your mat,
Feeling that physical connection of your body and the surface right below you,
Beneath you,
And deepen the breath in such a way you can feel your edges,
Maybe wiggling the fingers or the toes,
And find some kind of movements or a stretch that feels good to you,
Gently bending your knees,
Roll to your right side,
Take a moment there if you would like,
And then take your time to come up,
Finding a seat,
Finding this orientation,
Hips on the ground,
Spine tall,
Crown open to the heavens,
Let's join the palms at the heart,
Namaste,
Thanks for being here today with me.
